James Beard award-winning chef and restaurateur Anne Quatrano is enthusiastic about food and community—passions I admire and write about often here on our Journal. Around her home-base of Atlanta, Georgia, she is referred to “Queen Anne” and is the city’s “undisputed Grande dame” of the farm-to-table movement according to The Local Palate. It makes sense; Anne owns and operates six of Atlanta’s most celebrated restaurants, including: Bacchanalia, Quinones at Bacchanalia, Star Provisions, Provisions To Go, Floataway Café, and Abbattoir.

Anne was raised in Connecticut and attended culinary school in California, where she met her husband and business partner, Clifford Harrison. After school, they relocated to the East Coast, but decided to journey to the South in the early 1990s. Anne had family from Georgia, and Atlanta seemed like the perfect Southern city to make their home-base, as it was becoming a cultural and culinary hub at the time. Although they work in Atlanta, they live on Summerland Farm near Cartersville, Georgia, a property that has been owned by Quatrano’s family for five generations. Anne makes the 80-mile roundtrip to commute to Atlanta every day, because she “can’t imagine living anywhere else.” Summerland is where she and Clifford grow and source food, host gatherings, and delve into true Southern hospitality.

Much to our delight, Anne has released a book of recipes celebrating the South, sustainable food, and life on the farm. Summerland: Recipes for Celebrating Southern Hospitality focuses on eating seasonally, and each chapter is associated with a specific month, kicking off with September—perfect timing. I’m looking forward to trying her October cocktail, the Mint Julep. Anne notes that “many people think of the mint julep as a spring or summer drink, associated in particular with the Kentucky Derby. But the brightness of the mint with the warmth of the bourbon is just as appropriate for the fall.”

Summerland is filled with beautiful photography of the farm and food, and features hundreds of mouth-watering recipes perfect for entertaining. When browsing through the book, I was jealous to see that Anne and Clifford have an Airstream trailer on the farm just beyond their peach orchard. (It has long been a dream of mine to own an Airstream—the possibilities are endless: home office, design space, or just a good spot to read a book and nap.) Anne serves cocktails to her guests from her Airstream and has even built a makeshift patio for the trailer from wooden pallets. She is resourceful in every way.

Anne’s recipes offer up ultimate comfort, and any home cook should be comfortable following her simple approaches for creating delicious menus. She even offers bread and base recipes in the back—a very useful resource.

Atlanta is about a four-hour drive from Florence, and I’m eager to make a weekend trip there soon to dine at one of Anne’s restaurants. We are planning a “Friends of the Café” month with Anne and Clifford as soon as we can and hope to include a dinner and workshop. More soon…